Loose leaf binder



Jan. 16, 1934. R. M. WATSON LOOS E LEAF BINDER Filed March 23, 1931 INVENTOR. R/(HA RD M. WATSON Patented Jan. 16, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT orrice Application March 23,

7 Claims.

This invention relates to loose leaf binders, and has to do particularly with the more expensive type of loose leaf binder having an imperforate back.

.5 The present invention is adapted to be preferably embodied in binder structure of the type having a one-piece base member and a single attaching member therefor which is directly secured to the imperforate back and also completely concealed by the one-piece base member. More particularly the present invention contemplates certain improvements over the base structure and securing means disclosed in my Patent No..1,'771,104 of July 23, 1930.

An object of the present invention is to provide acompletely concealed attaching member and a base member having a shell with down turned ends and means forming a part of said concealed attaching member'for securing said inturned ends. Another feature of the invention resides in the fabrication of the attaching member and method of distorting a portion of the attaching means to secure the shell in position.

Other novel features reside in the details'of construction and assembly as will be more clearly brought out in the specification and claims.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view taken through the shell of the base member along the line l1 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan View of such shell and showing the apertured inturned end portions.

Fig. 3 is an end view of the .unit shown in Fig. 2; 1

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the attaching member showing particularly the positioning and securing means forming a part thereof.

Fig. 5 is an end View of the structure shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 4. r

Fig. 7 illustrates the method of assembling the shell and attaching member.

Fig. 8 is an end View of a complete binder unit embodying the construction of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of the structure shown in Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken on line 10-10 of Fig. 4.

The gist of the present invention resides in the structure of the shell of the base member and the attaching member together with the method of assembling the same, and in illus- 1931. Serial No. 524,513

(cr sis-24) trating the invention I have shown particularly I the details of this shell and attaching member but leaving out details of the paper retaining means and connecting mechanism as this latter feature forms no part of the present invention.

The shell forming the exposed part of the base member is illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and may be generally designated 1. This shell member is preferablyv stamped from a single sheet of metal and in addition to an arcuate top surface 2 is provided with longitudinally extending flanges 3 and 4 which may be turned over to form beads for receiving the blades 5, as shown in Fig. 8.v 1 I The ends 6 of this one-piece-shell are fabricated as best shown in Fig. 3 so as to completely fill in the ends of the base member except for the apertures 7, the purpose of which will be laterdescribed. 'The end members 6 are turned over as at 8 to form inwardly projecting flanges substantially parallel with the top surface 2. It will thus be seen that the top exposed surface of the shell extends substantially the length of the binder and is imperforate except for the small openings 9 formed along the edges thereof for receiving the paper retaining means 10, as shown in Fig. 8.

The attaching member 11 is best shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, andalso consists of an integral sheet metal stamping the general contour of which-is best shown in Fig. 5. This arcuate shape of the attaching member is such that it reinforces and maintains the shape of the back 12 of the binder, as best shown in Fig. 8. Centrally positioned lugs 13 are struck up at each end of the attaching member 11, and these lugs may be called clamping lugs. Positioning lugs 14 are struck upfrom the ends of the attaching memher and said lugs are so longitudinally spaced as to closely fit within the ends 8 of the shell when in assembled position, as best shown in After the shell of the base member has been assembled to include the paper retaining means and blades, the attaching member 11 may be secured to the back 12 of the binder by any of the wellknown methods, such as by gluing the attaching member 11 to the back and covering the same with a layer of cloth 15. The main point here is that in this type of binder the attaching member 11 is directly secured to the back of the binder without the use of rivets or the like so as to leave an imperforate back. After the attaching member 11 has been glued,

or otherwise secured to the back of the binder, the assembled shell will be inserted in place, as best shown in Fig. 7, whereby the lugs 14 of the attaching member back up the inturned portions 8 of the shell. A suitable tool, or pair of tools, may then be inserted through the apertures 7 of the shell and the upstanding lugs 13 bent over to contact with the portion 8 and positively clamp the shell directly to the attaching member. During this step of distorting the lug members 13 the lugs 14 will positively back up the ends of the shell member so as to keep all the parts in their original assembled position.

It will be obvious that this method and manner of directly assembling the shell of the base member and the attaching member not only presents a permanent neat appearing article but is very inexpensive both as to the assembly operations and the fabrication of the units themselves; the use of the standard third memher and its attendant fabrication and assembly cost being completely eliminated.

What I claim is:

l. A loose leaf binder comprising in combination a back, a base member comprising an attaching member secured to the binder adjacent the back and a shell extending substantially the length of the binder and having inturned portions and apertures formed in said inturned portions, and lug members carried by said attaching member and projecting through said apertures and directly contacting with said inturned portions to clamp the same in position, and stops carried by said attaching member cooperating with the edges of the inturned portions.

2. The method of securing a base member to the cover of a loose leaf binder, which comprises forming a metallic attaching member of the base member and punching out projections at each end of said attaching member which extend from the upper surface thereof, securing said attaching member to the back of the binder, fabricating a one piece shell member of the base member to provide turned over end members having inwardly extending projections and apertures, positioning said shell mem ber over said attaching member to register said projections and apertures and then securing said two members together by inserting a tool through the aperture in one of the turned over ends of the shell member and distorting the corresponding projection.

3. A loose leaf binder, comprising in combi nation a back, a two piece base member comprising a single shell extending substantially the length of the back of the binder and having inturned portions extending underneath and parallel to the surface of the shell and an attaching member secured to the inside of the back of the binder and having lug members directly engaging and clamping the inturned portions of the shell for securing the base member as a part of the binder, the exposed portions of the shell above said lug members being solid.

4. A loose leaf binder comprising in combination a back, a two piece base member comprising an attaching member secured to the binder adjacent the back and a shell extending substantially the length of the binder and having inturned portions and apertures formed in said inturned portions, and lug members carried by said attaching member and projecting through said apertures and directly contacting with said inturned portions to clamp the same in position, the exposed portions of the shell above said apertures and lug members being imperforate.

5. A loose leaf binder comprising in combination a back, a two piece base member comprising an attaching member secured to the inside of the back of the binder and a shell extending substantially the length of the binder and having inturned portions extending substantially parallel to the top of the shell, and means formed integrally with said attaching member and projecting inside of said shell and directly engaging the inturned portions whereby to clamp the shell to the attaching member, the exposed portions of the shell above said lug members being solid.

6. The method of securing a base member to the cover of a loose leaf binder, which comprises fabricating the shell of the base member to provide an inturned portion and an aperture therein, fabricating an attaching member of the base member to provide upturned lugs, said lugs being so positioned that when the shell member is assembled to the attaching member one lug will serve as a stop for said inturned portion of the shell member and another lug will project through the aperture in said inturned portion, securing said attaching member to the back of the binder, placing said shell member upon the attaching member and then inserting a tool through said aperture and dis torting one of said lug members.

7. The method of securing a base member to the cover of a loose leaf binder, which comprises fabricating the shellof the base member to provide inturned portions and apertures therein, fabricating an attaching member of the base member to provide upturned lugs, said lugs being so positioned that when the .shell member is assembled to the attaching member one lug will serve as a stop for an inturned portion of the shell member and another lug will project through the aperture in said inturned portion, securing said attaching member to the back of the binder, placing said shell member on the attaching member, and then inserting a tool through an aperture and distorting one of said lug members, said distorted lug member eing bent in a direction towards the lug member serving as a stop.

RICHARD M. WATSON. 

